


Salt Skin

by smaragdbird



Category: The Terror (TV 2018)
Genre: Affection, First Time, Hand Jobs, Hickey POV, Introspection, Kissing, M/M, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-27
Updated: 2020-10-27
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:20:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 966
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27231904
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smaragdbird/pseuds/smaragdbird
Summary: It's their first time, in the storeroom, in the dark
Relationships: William Gibson/Cornelius Hickey
Comments: 8
Kudos: 13
Collections: Hickeyshipping 2020





	Salt Skin

**Author's Note:**

  * For [inquisitor_tohru](https://archiveofourown.org/users/inquisitor_tohru/gifts).



In the quietness of the storeroom their breaths sound unnaturally loud. It’s nowhere else as quiet as it is here, can’t be with nearly seventy men aboard. It’s not the worst place he’s had sex, after all it’s warm and dry and the rats are more interested in the food and the corpses in the ice room than them.

Billy’s done this before, too, that much is clear. He’s laid out the rules of their arrangement in a few words that no one overhearing them would suspect are about sex. But it’s more than that. Billy kisses like he wants this, his hands are steady and undeterred as they push and pull at his clothes.

He likes Billy’s hands, likes how large they are, how rough and calloused they feel when Billy frames his face with them as they kiss. A sailor’s hands. Billy’s told him that he worked as a seaman on his previous ship but wasn’t rated high enough to volunteer for this one so he went for a steward’s position instead.

He likes Billy’s mouth, too, likes the way he kisses. In his experience most men do not like to kiss other men. They want the relief of sex but not the intimacy. Billy’s different though and he can’t help himself but to return the kisses enthusiastically. He tangles a hand into Billy’s hair at the back of head and deepens the kiss, pulls him closer.

The angle is a little awkward since Billy is quite a bit taller than him but that’s also part of the thrill. Billy’s happy to surrender the control of the kiss to him and he wonders how far he could take Billy’s submissiveness if he wanted to.

But he also knows that they’re pressed for time. Sooner or later someone’s going to notice that they’re both missing. Sooner or later they’re going to have to return to their duties. There will be other times, he thinks as he ignores the temptation to push Billy down to his knees. Neither of them is going anywhere, being stuck on the same ship, being stuck in the Arctic ice.

Billy gasps when he wraps his hand around his cock. He silences him with another kiss and guides his hand to his own cock. It’s been more than a year since he felt someone else’s touch and the urge to moan feels like an explosion in his chest.

Billy breaks the kiss for a moment to spit in his hand and that makes everything so much better. His strokes are slow and certain and he wishes for some light so he could see Billy’s face. They brought a lantern but closed the blinds when they arrived here so that the flame wouldn’t give them away. It’s not often that he’s done this with someone who actually likes men. 

There will be other times, he reminds himself and tightens his hand around Billy’s cock, can feel Billy buck into his grip. It’s probably been a long time for him too and neither of them is going to last. He pushes himself against Billy, wraps his hand around both of their cocks and Billy follows suit.

Billy’s forehead is pressed against his and they’re both panting into each other’s mouth, both of them close to release. Billy’s other hand is wrapped around the back of his neck, thumb drawing circles on his skin without thought or sense.

He’s missed the intimacy for so long and wishes they had light and time and a bed. That’s his thought as he comes over their joined hands, almost mindlessly pushing himself against Billy so he can feel him as much as possible.

Billy’s not far behind, making a strangled sound as he tries not to moan when he comes. They’re probably breathing too loud anyway but the sweet rush through his bones is worth the risk of discovery. He’s not scared of getting lashed, there are worse things, but that does not mean he’s going to invite it if he can help it.

His lungs are heaving and his heart is racing in his chest and he feels better than he has in a long time. Unexpectedly Billy pulls him into another kiss, sweet and unhurried, and he almost pushes him away out of instinct before he realises what is happening.

No one’s ever kissed him directly after sex. Starvation is an old companion but he has never realised before that he’s starving for someone’s touch as well. There’s an odd reluctance settling in his chest when they do finally pull apart.

They tuck themselves back into their trousers before Billy opens one of the lantern blinds. The light is blinding after the total darkness and he shields his eyes against it.

Billy laughs softly as he looks at him, eyes blue and bright like he imagines the sea and sky at Oahu will be when they get there. “You couldn’t pass muster like this if you sailed under old Captain Sawyer”, he says and quickly rights his collar and smooths over his waistcoat. Billy himself is of course perfectly put in place as if he hadn’t just screwed against a stack of crates.

“Blind as a mole, eh?” He asks as Billy closes the top button of his shirt for him. “I am in your hands, Mr. Gibson.”

“Maybe more than just my hands next time.” There’s a smile playing around Billy’s lips and he cannot help himself but to stand on his toes and press a quick kiss to Billy’s lips. It’s risky with the lights on but he’s confident that the rats are the only thing here but them.

“I’ll see you later, Billy”, he says as he picks up his jacket. “Let me know if you need more help with your ‘inventory’.”


End file.
